There are good reasons to value rowing over cycling as platforms to get fit. The first and most obvious is that most gyms offer you the option to get on one of the best rowing machines (opens in a new tab) or the best exercise bikes (opens in a new tab).
The second less obvious reason is that, unlike running, neither activity is weight-bearing, which means they carry less risk of injury, so you can probably do one more often and for longer.
But this is rowing versus cycling, not rowing And cycling, so which one should you choose, for your fitness and body goals? Is one better than the other for fitness, fat loss, functional strength, health, or wallet? Let’s find out …
Rowing vs cycling: what’s the difference?
Calories burned
One of the first things everyone looks at when comparing fitness activities is the calories burned. While this is a blunt instrument, it is worth considering.
According to Cycling Weekly, (opens in a new tab) a 55kg person, cycling at 18mph outdoors for one hour will burn 660kcal. Meanwhile, the same person on a rowing machine (according to the algorithm that powers the popular online calorie calculators based on the Compendium of Physical Activities (opens in a new tab)), clocked at 150 watts will burn around 490 kcal, or if they really push it to 200 watts they will burn around 690 kcal. However, it would be difficult for you to keep it that way for a full hour. (The numbers for a 75 kg person are 900 kcal and 670 kcl / 945 kcl respectively.)
The calorie numbers tell you that cycling surpasses this, which is interesting given that rowing activates about 85% of your musculature, while road cycling in particular tends to primarily activate the lower body.
The muscles worked
Rowing and cycling are great ways to develop cardiovascular fitness and also increase anaerobic capacity through fat burning HIIT training. The point where they start to differ is in the effect on the muscles, but this also depends on the setting.
Watching rowing to begin with, the exercise activates the entire posterior chain in the transmission phase, from the heels, down to the calves, hamstrings, glutes, core, spinal erectors and neck. During the pull phase it also affects quadriceps, forearms, biceps and lats.
It activates 85% of the muscles and on top of that it moves many of those muscles through the entire range of motion, particularly in the legs and back. This means that rowing in the gym is likely to make you functionally stronger than cycling in the gym. Bicycling to the gym doesn’t activate as many muscles (unless you are getting up from the saddle) because the upper body is less involved.
Where this picture changes is with downhill mountain biking and other types of cycling where you spend a lot of time out of the saddle, using your core to create a bridge and working your upper body as a human suspension unit. .
Other health benefits
When it comes to overall health, there have been many high-quality studies on the health benefits of cycling. Once that study, published in the BMJ (opens in a new tab), has shown that regular commuter cycling reduces the risk of death from cancer and heart disease. And another UK study published in Neuroimage (opens in a new tab) found that after six weeks of cycling for 30 minutes a day, five times a week, a group of sedentary adults demonstrated an increase in brain volume in the hippocampus, where new brain cells are produced, which returned to its previous level after six weeks off.
There are fewer studies for rowing because it’s a less universal sport, but because it’s also very aerobic, you might expect to see similar health benefits.
Head outdoors
Once you’ve freed rowing and cycling from the gym and taken them outdoors, the practical and lifestyle differences become clear. Cyclists come in all shapes and sizes, as are bicycles. There is a wide range of road bikes, mountain bikes, commuter bikes and cycling subgenres. And new ones are always emerging, from gravel bikes to e-bikes.
You can join a cycling club as easily as being a solo cyclist and there is hardly a landscape in the world that hasn’t seen someone try to cross it on a bicycle, and on old multi-thousand dollar boneshakers, carbon fiber machinery.
Outdoor rowing, on the other hand, is a different beast. To get the same fitness and strength training benefits as an outdoor Concept 2 rowing machine, you need to be on a rowing boat designed to race in regattas. So, the first thing you need to do is join a rowing club, either to access these boats or to join a crew of eight, four or a couple. (You can row alone, but it’s something rowers tend to graduate later on.)
Once you join a club and sign up for a training and running program, you need to be prepared for rowing to take on a large part of your life. It’s a team sport, so you’ll need to show up to practice in the water, as well as train your fitness with Concept 2-like rowing machines on land. It is undoubtedly fun and engaging, but it is also a commitment.
Rowing vs cycling: the costs
If you’re comparing rowing to indoor cycling, you’re looking for a gym membership for both, or a rowing machine or stationary bike (or turbo trainer) for your home. Stationary bikes cost similar to rowing machines (around $ 2,500 for a good model, or around $ 300 for something very basic), although turbo trainers can be significantly cheaper if you already have an outdoor bike to use with them ( from about $ 250).
Once you get outdoors, costs go up, even if an entry-level road bike can be purchased for a few hundred dollars. Plus, top-of-the-line rides cost over $ 10,000. In terms of annual running costs, you will need to replace the chain every few months to avoid wear on the crankset and chainrings (which will eventually also need to be replaced). Other consumable parts include brake pads, tires and inner tubes and change cables. You can pay a yearly service to collect all of these things, and all in all, you’re looking at at least $ 200 a year. And you’ll need a budget for essential accessories, like a bike helmet.
A rowing club membership is likely to cost $ 60 per month or $ 670 per year but there is no need to purchase the boat so there is a lower initial cost to take up the sport so in the first year or so there is no. it is very inside.
Rowing vs cycling: the verdict
Ultimately, rowing and cycling are magnificent engines for improving fitness, overall health, body composition, and life satisfaction. Rowing could overtake cycling for functional strength improvements if you never get off the bike saddle, but if you’re a mountain biker, or even a gravel rider, the difference is marginal. And as mentioned above, cycling seems to burn more calories if you’re in the gym.
The activities are also similar in terms of costs. If you are tackling the outdoor versions and are short on time, outdoor cycling may be a better choice than outdoor rowing.
Wherever you are between rowing and cycling, you can rest assured that neither is a bad choice and that both could just kick off the changes you want to make in your body and in your life, so get it!